first the Lazi with difficulty brought in provisions
for these soldiers, but later they gave up the service and the Romans
abandoned these forts, whereupon the Persians with no trouble took
possession of them. This then happened in Lazica.

And the Romans, under the leadership of Sittas and Belisarius, made an
inroad into Persarmenia, a territory subject to the Persians, where they
plundered a large tract of country and then withdrew with a great
multitude of Armenian captives. These two men were both youths and
wearing their first beards[16], body-guards of the general Justinian,
who later shared the empire with his uncle Justinus. But when a second
inroad had been made by the Romans into Armenia, Narses and Aratius
unexpectedly confronted them and engaged them in battle. These men not
long after this came to the Romans as deserters, and made the expedition
to Italy with Belisarius; but on the present occasion they joined battle
with the forces of Sittas and Belisarius and gained the advantage over
them. An invasion was also made near the city of Nisibis by another
Roman army under command of Libelarius of Thrace. This army retired
abruptly in flight although no one came out against thorn. And because
of this the emperor reduced Libelarius from his office and appointed
Belisarius commander of the troops in Daras. It was at that time that
Procopius, who wrote this history, was chosen as his adviser. [527 A.D.]

XIII

[Apr. 1, 527] Not long after this Justinus, who had declared his nephew
Justinian emperor with him, died, and thus the empire came to Justinian
alone. [Aug. 1, 527] This Justinian commanded Belisarius to build a
fortress in a place called Mindouos, which is over against the very
boundary of Persia, on the left as one goes to Nisibis. He accordingly
with great haste began to carry out the decision of the emperor, and the
fort was already rising to a considerable height by reason of the great
number of artisans. But the Persians forbade them to build any further,
threatening that, not with words alone but also with deeds, they would
at no distant time obstruct the work. When the emperor heard this,
inasmuch as Belisarius was not able to beat off the Persians from the
place with the army he had, he ordered another army to go thither, and
also Coutzes and Bouzes, who at that time commanded the soldiers in
Libanus[17]. These two were brothers from Thrace, both young and
inclined to be rash in engaging with t